Talking Budget

During City budget discussions, it’s important to know the meaning of several terms. The property tax levy is the total amount of revenue that a local unit will collect through the property tax in one year. The gross levy is the total amount of taxes billed including the portion paid by the state through state tax credits. The net levy is the gross levy minus the state credits. The mill rate is the rate of taxation expressed in terms of dollars of property tax per $1,000 of value. For example, a tax rate of .02400 or 2.4% is equal to 24 mills or $24.00 per $1,000 of value.
Assessed values are the property values determined for individual parcels of property by the local assessor. Equalized value is the state-determined full market value of all property within each jurisdiction. Equalized values provide a means of comparing different jurisdictions, even if they are assessed at different percentages of market value. Dividing the total assessed value by the equalized value produces a district’s assessment ratio. All taxable property is classified as either real estate or personal property.
The City annually adds net new construction to the existing assessed values and divides that number by the gross levy to determine the gross mill rate. If you want to determine what your gross taxes are before state tax credits are applied, you must multiple your assessed value plus any net new construction by the gross mill rate.
The City’s Budget has an increase in the gross levy of $25,600 which when applied to the assessed values plus net new construction results in a lower gross mill rate. This means that most people in the City of Lake Mills will pay slightly less in City taxes this year than they did last year.